11/04/2010 @ 6:00PM

The Power Of Investing In Global Literacy

My life today looks very different from a decade ago. You could call me a refugee from the corporate world, but I prefer to think of myself as one who has experienced the best of the for- and non-profit worlds. Back in the mid-’90s, before I became cofounder and chief executive officer of Room to Read, I led business development and operations for
Unilever
in Vietnam. Before that I had lived and worked in Hong Kong, Singapore and Indonesia for
Goldman Sachs
.

It was an exciting time. Diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the United States had normalized, and direct foreign investments were beginning to drive economic growth there. When I arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, the vibrancy of the country and the entrepreneurial spirit of the people amazed me. I quickly realized, however, that finding and hiring an educated and experienced workforce would be challenging. Many people lacked basic skills or education and had barely ever used a telephone, much less a computer or sophisticated factory equipment. With a population of 84 million, Vietnam is one of the world’s most populous countries. It has made significant strides in many areas, including education. But it still needs increased access to quality education, particularly in rural areas.

After almost three years of living in Vietnam, I returned to the U.S. and quickly found myself caught up in to the boom and bust of the dot-com era. I worked to expand international business for two different technology startups. But I kept reflecting back on my experiences in Vietnam, and I felt a growing desire to make a difference in the world. I realized that I felt far more passion about educating the world’s children than about promoting the Internet revolution. I have been a lifelong admirer of Goethe’s quote “Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.” So after 10 years in the corporate world, I left to cofound Room to Read, an international nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting literacy and gender equality in education

Despite significant strides, widespread literacy remains elusive for many countries. There are still an estimated 759 million adults who have never learned to read or write, and two-thirds of them are women. According to the World Bank, educating a girl is one of the best investments anyone can make in the fight against global poverty. Education increases women’s labor force participation rates and earnings; for every year a girl is educated beyond the average, her earning potential increases by 15%.

At Room to Read, I see firsthand that investing in the education of children worldwide pays dividends for years to come. Education has the proven power to lift families out of poverty in one generation and to change the fate of entire communities in the developing world. Each time I see the smiles on the faces of children who have just stepped into their first library, one filled with colorful stories in their own language, I am reminded of why I took that leap of faith years ago and ventured away from the corporate world.

As we celebrate Room to Read’s tenth anniversary, we can look back on building more than 1,200 schools and10,000 libraries, publishing 433 local language children’s books in 22 languages and supporting almost 9,000 girls through our Girls’ Education Program. However, I myself am not looking back. I continue to look forward, striving each day to ensure that all children, no matter what circumstances they may be born into, will have access to a quality education that enables them to reach their full potential in life. That, after all, is my true passion, and it is the most I can contribute to the welfare and prosperity of the world.

Erin Ganju is cofounder and CEO of Room to Read, an organization that seeks to transform the lives of millions of children in the developing world by focusing on literacy and gender equality in education. The organization aims to reach 10 million children with its programs by 2015. For more information visit www.roomtoread.org.